The plastic connector for the strap on my Charge 4 sheared off spontaneously, literally while sitting at dinner. My investigation reveals that this problem is common and strongly suggests it is a design flaw. There are several posts on this topic (search the word "connector").
Assistance from Fitbit was completely inadequate: Discount coupon for a replacement, although there are so many limitations on the coupon that it is worth almost nothing, and it is laughable. There are several posts on Fitbit's trick of offering a Discount Coupon and why the coupon is close to worthless.
So I went about repairing the broken connector on my Charge 4 tracker. It's not easy, but here's what worked for me (and I think that each and every step and point described below are important):
- I had all three of the pieces (since it broke spontaneously in my dress shirt, all of the pieces including the tiny spring were trapped in my sleeve and I saved all of them: tiny spring; push button; broken-off strap connector with two screws embedded in it
- I disconnected the remaining wrist strap so that I could study the opposite side to see how it assembles
- The tiny screws were still embedded in the piece that snapped off. It was not necessary for me to remove the screws, and I didn't try.
- I cleaned every piece with an alcohol wipe and tweezers to remove all of the crud and get surfaces in good condition for glue
- I used tweezers to re-assemble the pieces on the tracker (rather than my fingers)
- I practiced re-assembling the broken parts over and over, such that I could do it smoothly, consistently, and accurately without mis-steps or fumbling around. Every step described is important, and I think this step is very important.
- Once I was able to reproducibly reassemble the pieces, I reassembled and then added Crazy Glue to hold the snapped off piece onto the body.
Minor but important details for reassembling and gluing the pieces are as follows:
- tracker body is placed screen side down
- tiny spring is put into position resting on a nubbin that sticks out from the body
- push button is placed over the spring – the push button stays balanced in this position on its own
- the piece with screws embedded is then slid in from the side over the "push button"
- 1/2 drop (not full drop) of thin Crazy Glue added between broken piece and body. The Crazy Glue is initially added in just two places -- essentially where each screw/connector broke away from the body. It is very important to avoid getting Crazy Glue in/around the push button, because the button has to be able to move up/down
- I used very strong pressure with my thumbnails on each side of the broken piece to hold the glued piece flush against the body of the tracker until it was secure. If you instead try to press the sheared-off part onto the body between your index finger and thumb (which is the natural thing to do), this position is unstable. One ends up with the piece wiggling a bit, which is not good for setting the Crazy Glue. And if one squeezes harder, the assembly buckles and pieces fly everywhere. Instead, I found that thumbnail pressure on the flat portion of the broken piece provided the strongest pressure against the body of the tracker, and simultaneously provided greatest stability
- Once this initial bit of gluing is set and dry, I added another 1/2 - 1 drop of Crazy Glue to further secure the broken piece. I added a small amount of Crazy Glue by allowing it to wick into the space between the edge of the plastic lens and the broken connector. Again, I used tiny amounts to avoid accidentally getting it on the push button.
- Hair dryer used to help set the Crazy Glue. (I set up the hair dryer running on low before I even started gluing the pieces in).
- Even though I moved the push button up/down several times when applying glue to try to avoid it from getting glued in place, after the glue dried I found it was difficult to move the button up and down. The button depressed, but the spring wasn't strong enough to raise the button because of some stickiness from the glue. I worked the button up and down, but it still wouldn't come up spontaneously. So to reconnect the strap, I pushed the button down, put the strap in place, and then use a small pin to get under the bottom edge of the button (on each side of the button) to manually raise the button to hold the strap in place. This shouldn’t be a problem, as the button will not inadvertently or spontaneously depress. The strap is very well secured.
In addition to practicing the maneuver before actually gluing the piece, I used 1) magnification; 2) extra light to be able to see what I was doing but perhaps that's because I'm an old dude.
I have great confidence in this repair, but only time will tell. I’m using my tracker now, just like before.
Good luck to all that try this repair. I feel fortunate that it worked, and that I don't find myself forking over more money to Fitbit.
Moderator Edit: Clarified subject
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